Adding a little something...

Card Created using Nov 10th's Card Sketch

When I first created this card, I looked at it for a long time. Something was missing. Hours later, it still sat there, waiting for me to have an epiphany... Finally I sneezed, and reached for a kleenex... and that's when I had the idea!

I cut small pieces of Kleenex and added it to the card, with Glossy accents glue.

here are some suggestions on jazzing up other Rubber Romance Stamps:

Perhaps you could use some FlowerSoft or cotton balls to add texture to Trisha's towel.

Bunnie Girl would benefit from some Velvet Flock Powder on her robe and slippers

Puffy Velvet markers would make Diva Chef's cake look delish!!

no matter how you chose to jazz up your stamped images, I'd love to see them!
Happy Creating!
Samantha

Sketch Challenge - Nov 10th

Winning is easy:
1) Create a card with the sketch using Rubber Romance Stamps
2) Post it to your blog or gallery
3) Link your post here, using the mister linky tool below
you have until Nov 19th! Good luck



Our Sept 20th sketch Challenge Winner is...



Stacie
http://craft-princess.blogspot.com/2009/11/hi-ya.html

BIG Congrats!

Holiday Gift Bags!

Hi Everyone! Hope you all are gearing up for a wonderful Holiday season! There have been some AMAZING ideas and tutorials here on the blog and I hope you all have found them helpful, fun, and inspiring!

My fellow Design Team girls ROCK!

Today I just want to encourage you to use your stamps this holiday for more than just cards! You have seen wine charms, gift card holders, and candles, but you always need something to put those things inside!!! Here I have a super cute Rubber Romance Stamp (See the selection here), a holiday patterned paper (Smitten mitten by Cosmo Cricket), Copic Ciao Markers, American Craft Ribbon, Stickles by Ranger, and a 59 cent gift bag from Michael's.

First I cut and adhered my patterned paper to the gift bag.

Next, I stamped my image and colored it with my copics to match my paper. I then accented my image with stickles to give it a little bling!

I then attached the image to my gift bag and tied my ribbon at the top.

For a super easy gift. I bought a glass bottle at Michael's and filled with red and green candy and tied some coordinating ribbon and tulle at the top of the corked bottle.

Place your bottle in the bag and you don't even need tissue paper! The adorable Rubber Romance image decorates the gift bag perfectly!

Put your Rubber Romance Stamps to work this holiday season and encourage those around you to tap into their creative side too! Happy gift giving!

Tutorial - Gift Card Holder

I don't know about you, but I think gift cards are one of the best things available to gift buyers (and recipients!!). I love coming up with easy ways to dress up a gift card, and I thought I'd share one of those ways with you!

You'll need:
- 4"x12" strip of patterned paper
- 4 1/4" x 8 1/4" strip of cardstock (in a coordinating color)
- Word Window punch
- Stamped Image: I used Judy is Giving Gifts - which is so wonderful for these holders...Judy works well for so many gift giving situations!
- ribbon
- embellishments/pattern paper/cardstock
- gift card


To start, score the 4"x12" patterned paper at 4", 6", and 8". Fold so it looks like this:

Fold paper in half. Using your gift card as a guide, place marks on both sides of the card for where you should punch the opening.

Using the Word Window punch, create a slit for the gift card to slide through.

Fold the 4 1/4" x 8 1/4" cardstock in half. Adhere ribbon across the center.

Adhere patterned paper to cardstock atop the ribbon as shown. Place gift card in slot.

Decorate the front of the gift card holder with cardstock, patterned paper, and embellishments.

With these few simple steps, you'll have a fabulous gift card holder that will be enjoyed just as much (if not more) as the gift card!

Enjoy!
Stephanie

Romantic Tutorial- Coloring your Rubber Romance Images

One thing about Rubber Romance images is that most of them require coloring. I know a lot of stampers use Copics to color images but if you are like me, those just aren't in the budget at this point. I am going to show you is how to use Prismacolor Pencils with Odorless Mineral spirits to color your images. This way you can have coloring and shading at a fraction of the cost of Copic markers. I was able to find the 120ct. set at my local craft store and used a 50% off coupon. It is one of the best investments I have made for crafting.

Supplies Needed:
Prismacolor Pencils
Odorless Mineral Spirits (OMS,artist grade)
Paper Blending Stumps (the ones made in Taiwan are the best)
File or sanding block
A Good Permanent Ink that will not bleed (recommended Memento Ink)
Good quality cardstock

First, Stamp your image. If you are using Memento ink, there is no need to let it dry- it is ready immediately for coloring. I am using my all-time favorite Rubber Romance Image. I love this Martini Girl!

Next choose a color and start coloring. For best results in shading keep your color to the outer edges of the image

Next, take your blending stump and dip and soak the end with OMS. Use the blending stump to pull the color from the edges towards the middle using circular motion for best results.


When you are done blending this is what it will look like. You can do more or less depending on your desired result.

Continue to use the same technique on the rest of the image. *** Make sure you file the blending stump between colors to prevent mixing of colors.


Here is the image colored and blended.

Now you can add fun accents to make your image more unique. I chose to add Stickles to the earrings and Crystal Effects to her lips to look like lip gloss. :)

Now my image is ready to be added to my project. I hope I inspired you to try something new today! Be sure to be on the lookout for my finished project on my blog.

Thanks! Sherry Campbell- Rubber Romance DT Member. :)

Cute Stamped Canvas Bag

My daughter is in her first year of Brownies. At her first meeting, she came home with this cute little canvas bag. Her assignment was to decorate the bag that would be used at each meeting. I was so excited. I told her we would get out the stamps and make a fun creation! Here is what we came up with:The bag was super easy and fun to make. First we took our Rubber Romance "Fashionesta" stamp and brown Staz-on ink. We stamped all over the canvas bag.We even stamped the straps. It was so fun working with my daughter too! Next we added a sheer brown ribbon to one of the straps. Finally we added 2 silk flowers with a large brad. My daughter couldn't wait to put it on and show it off!
These would make such cute favor bags for girls birthday parties!

Tutorial - Stamping on a Candle

Happy Friday!!!!!! I have a fun technique to share with you today....stamping on candles. It's super easy and makes a great gift for any occassion.

You'll need......
Your favorite Rubber Romance stamp....here I used Denise has a Birthday
Candle
Tissue Paper
Wax Paper
Black Ink
Coloring medium....here I used Copic Markers
Heat Gun
Embellishments

I start by stamping my image in black ink onto the tissue paper. I then colored her with Copic Markers. Make sure you have a piece of paper under the tissue paper to absorb the bleed thru.

Then, you cut out the image as close as possible.

Next, grab your candle and lay your cut out image onto it.

Wrap the wax paper over the image and around the candle creating a handle in the back for you to hold onto. Using your heat gun, heat the wax paper over where the image is. The area will turn shiny and the tissue paper will disappear once the wax adheres to the candle.

Here's what the candle looks like once the image is adhered.

To finish the project, I stamped "Birthday Diva" onto some ribbon using Staz-On ink and wrapped it around the bottom of the candle adhering it to the back using a brad than I pressed into the candle.

I hope you'll make your own candle for your next handmade gift!!!!

Happy Stamping,

Shannon